Fifteen Koroshi School of Defense competitors from Ashtabula traveled to Hebron, just outside of Columbus, recently to compete in the Koroshi Open martial arts tournament.
The 15 Ashtabula Koroshi students brought home a collective 43 trophies for first, second, and third places, and five medals for fourth place in various events.
Koroshi School of Defense is a martial arts school offering Tae Kwon Do instruction to children and adults. Classes are offered at The Chalk Box on Main Avenue in Ashtabula.
Master Craig Clinton is the lead instructor for the Tae Kwon Do classes. Master Clinton is a world-ranked martial artist and holds a place in the Karate and Kickboxing Hall of Fame. Master Clinton is assisted by Sensei Frank Noewer.
Classes are under the Koroshi School of Defense name which carries a reputation of more than 39 years of excellence in martial arts training. Competitors from The Chalk Box competed in multiple events at the tournament, placing in the top four in nearly every event.
n Tessa Nicholson competed in the 11-12 year old girls’ intermediate division and took home two first-place trophies, one for kata and one for grappling, as well as a second-place trophy for sparring and third place for synchronized form.
n Aiyanna Jennings, competing in the 7-8 year old girls’ intermediate division, placed first in grappling, second in kata and sparring and third for synchronized form.
n Meghan Gillespie in the 7-8 year old girls’ novice division placed second in the grappling and fourth for kata and sparring.
n Jared Clinton placed first in kata and padded weapon sparring as well as second for bow form in the 13-14-year-old boys’ intermediate division.
n Alex Lohr in the 9-10 year old boys’ novice division, took first place for sparring, third place for kata and fourth place for synchronized form.
n Edward Lohr won first place for kata and sparring and placed fourth for synchronized form in the 11-12 year old boys’ novice division.
n Finley Morris placed second in the 7-8-year-old boys’ novice division for sparring and padded weapon sparring and took third for his kata.
n Competing in the 11-12-year-old boys’ novice division, Jonathan Starkey placed first for bow form, second for kata and sparring, third for synchronized form and fourth for padded weapons sparring.
n Colin Priestap, competing in the 7-8-year-old boys’ intermediate division, placed second for grappling, sparring and bow form and placed third for kata.
n In the 13-14-year-old boys’ novice division, Josiah Frank came home with two first-place trophies, one for kata and one for sparring.
n Lilly Frank won two first-place trophies for kata and sparring in the 9-10-year-old girls’ novice division.
These were four competitors in the adult novice and intermediate divisions:
n Caleb Frank took first place in kata, synchronized form, sparring and grappling in the intermediate adult division.
n Esther Frank placed first in sparring and synchronized kata, as well as second in kata in the intermediate adult division.
n Stacey Little won first place for sparring, second place for synchronized form, third place for synchronized form and third place for her kata in the novice adult division.
n Kristi Morris placed second in synchronized form and kata in the novice adult division.
The Chalk Box and Master Clinton welcome new enrollments at any time for martial arts classes. Tae Kwon Do classes are offered on Tuesdays and Thursday from 4-5 p.m.
The Chalk Box also offers gymnastics classes for children age 2 and up and a variety of fitness classes that are open for enrollment at any time. Craig Clinton teaches several fitness classes (Koroshi Kick Fit, Medicine Ball, Personal Defense and personal training) in addition to the martial arts.
